What I Did to Save Money and Settle my Credit Card Debt

In one of my older posts, I talked about how I settled my credit card debt with HSBC. The article How to Get a Bank Clearance for your Credit Card, is where I outlined the actions that I did in contacting HSBC and negotiated on paying my 6-year old debt. Yes, six (6) years! I stopped paying my credit card in 2010, and only had the courage to call my bank in 2016.

The truth is, I always had the intention to contact them but I didn’t know when and how. The fear in my mind is making up all these possibilities like the need to hire a lawyer and appearing in-front of a judge in court. All these kept me away from debt collectors, and I managed to evade them for years.

Thankfully, I made the right decision to not entertain the debt collectors! I never thought that I could resolve everything with just one call, and a trip to the HSBC office in Taguig later. It was absolutely hassle-free! No debt collector from whatever law firm they claim to be working for, is involved!

So, what did I do to save enough money and be confident enough to call my bank? This is where the difficult part of the story comes in.

After I stopped paying my credit card in 2010, I started thinking about being more responsible financially. However, I never really saved money prior to that so I didn’t know where or how to start. Moreover, I was partying the entire time in 2010 and 2011.

Needless to say, when I left my job in 2012, my bank account was empty and I shamelessly relied on the help of my siblings for three months until I got another job.

Two months into my new job, my boss in the US invited me over for a training and meet and greet. My company prepared all the paperworks and when it was time for me to appear in the US Embassy for the dreaded Visa interview, HR asked me to bring a copy of my bank account statement.

Imagine how embarrassing it was to tell them that I didn’t have a property, no car, and no bank account other than payroll.
That’s when my journey at saving money started. I promised to myself that I will start saving from that time on. And I kid you not, it was never easy then, and still not very easy now. In fact, it was not until a year later when I opened a bank account. Here’s a timeline of how I was saving money prior to calling HSBC in 2016:

2012

I landed a new job and decided to save money and settle my then two-year old debt. At around this time, I also started earning extra cash from my sideline as a wedding photographer. However, I was still recovering financially from being jobless for three months, so I actually barely saved anything that year.

2013

I opened a new savings account with BDO. I chose BDO because I was aiming to qualify for the BDO Reward’s card, a move that I did not regret doing later. This has inspired me to save even more.

So, what was my solution? I modified the rule so it would fit my personal financial situation:

50% – rent and bills40% – for spending10% – saving

As mentioned above, I was not used to saving. I was raised with a “loan mentality” so saving money is not in my nature. But by saving only a small amount every payday, I was putting this “saving mentality” into my system at a very slow pace. A pacing that my financial spirit could absorb and handle.

The good news is, it is working!

Ironically, this was when the calls from debt collectors started coming in, again.

2015

I travelled to the US in March of this year. It was my first time outside the country so it got me really excited. Although everything was paid for by my company, personal spending was unavoidable.

In May of the same year, I bought a MacBook which I thought was a good investment for my photography needs. I paid 50% in cash, and the other half through a friend’s credit card for a six-month installment plan. For the next six months, I was paying her around P6,000. That was a new aha! moment for me.

I thought, if I am able to save 10% of my salary and pay my friend P6,000 every month, I should now be able to save that same amount moving forward! I could now do the 50-30-20 rule!

And so I did. I started saving more.

By the end of 2015, I paid the reservation fee for a condo unit. A move that almost lead me into depression the following year.

2016

One of the usual pitfalls for first-time money savers is: getting too excited of how much they’ve already saved.

After paying the reservation fee for a condo unit the previous year, my agent quickly prepared all the paperworks and before I knew it, I was already allotting a big chunk of my budget for the downpayment (at a 12-month installment). Unfortunately, I also decided to let go of my sideline that year. In short, I brought in a liability but removed an asset.

On the other hand, I was already starting to believe that acquiring a property that year is a huge mistake (and a financial advisor would tell me that for sure, if I consulted one). For months, I was getting rejection after rejection from banks who wouldn’t approve my home loan applications. At some point, I considered giving up on the over P200K downpayment that my siblings and I already paid. I thought, perhaps, the condo is not for me or not for us.

But as what they say, God works in mysterious ways. It turns out that it was both a blessing and a blessing in disguise. Because this made me finally decide to contact HSBC to pay my six-year old credit card debt and get a bank clearance. Luckily, I was able to negotiate and brought the amount down from P120K to P35K!

What was initially a harrowing experience turned out to be joyful in the end. 2016 was the most financially challenging point of my life. It has taught me so many lessons that in the middle of 2017, I finally decided to document everything through this blog, with hopes that what I am sharing will be helpful to someone who’s going through the same phase.

Yes, always remember that this is just a phase. If your credit card debt is giving you nightmares, you will get through it for as long as you have a genuine intention to settle it when you can.

For six years, I was hiding from credit card debt collectors. My LinkedIn and JobStreet profiles were set to private because I was afraid they could find me there. I would get anxious if I get a call from unknown numbers, and worse, when debt collectors found my new employer and reached my office extension number.
I did not ask for miracles that my debt will suddenly disappear, although I did pray for some divine intervention. And because paying my debt has always been in my intentions, the universe conspired to find ways to lead me and push me towards fulfilling that. It gave me the right opportunities (disguised as difficulties), and the right people (very patient agents, friends and siblings) to help me.

The paths were not inviting at all, they were scary, unclear and rough. I was extremely hesitant and fearful at first, but when I decided to follow and go through the many obstacles, I surprisingly emerged unscratched in the end.

So if you are reading this because you’ve been receiving threats from debt collectors, start saving up money and call your bank after. If you already have the money, I highly recommend that you settle your debt with your bank directly.

If you are having a hard time saving money, perhaps you could relate to my personal financial struggles as well. I’ve been working for over ten years now, but I only recently took saving money and being frugal seriously. The lessons that I learned along the way played a very important role in my story of finally settling my credit card debt.

I am documenting my progress in my personal finance articles where I also share my tips on how to adapt a “saving mentality” for us who are not wired to save. To learn more, you may browse my posts by clicking on this image: